The Corporation
by IamAngel624
Summary: AU humanization. The Corporation stole his son, wanting to use him as a test for their newest hunters. Can his father get him back?
1. Prologue

_Wow, this is the THIRD TIME I've uploaded this story. I find that immensely amusing. XD_

_I've given this story some major changes. As you can tell, the prologue is more or less based on the deleted scene where Marlin tells Nemo a story. I love that deleted scene, especially the lines, "The ocean came and took Mommy away?" "That's right. It did." It is just so touching and heartbreaking. And, having gone through a similar loss (it's been over a year since my Dad died; wow), the whole story-telling thing, the incident being a memory instead of an eyewitness account….it just seems to fit more when the characters are human._

_Also, I'm not changing their names. A few names I had worked out were cute: Matthew=Marlin, Danae=Dory, Natty=Nemo, etc. But there were some names, like Anchor, Chum, Crush, Squirt, and Gill, that I couldn't figure out a good parallel for. So I took the lazy way out. Go figure. XP_

_But it is still a humanized AU fic, and it still takes place on the Texas coast._

_And, don't worry; the rest of the story isn't going to be written in pure dialogue form. I'm just experimenting a bit._

_PARACANTHURUS HEPATATUS FTW._

**---Prologue---**

"Daddy? Why am I so different?"

"Different? Well…what do you mean, Nemo?"

"All the other kids in our neighborhood have two arms and two parents. I don't."

"Oh…well, son, I…I don't know if you're old enough --"

"I'm six years old, Dad! I can handle it!"

"Well…I guess…the psychologist _did _say that I should tell you when you started asking….okay, Nemo. Come here, and I'll tell you."

"Okay."

_The creak of a floor, the sound of a young lad crawling into his father's lap._

"You comfy?"

"Yes, Daddy."

"Good. Well, first off, we didn't always live here in Lake Jackson."

"What?! But I've always lived here! As long as I can remember!"

"Well, you were a little baby when we lived there. You and your brother and your two sisters."

"Wow! I had a big family, didn't I?"

_A chuckle._ "Yes, Nemo, you did. At that time, we lived on the beach at Galveston --"

"It was a BIG house, right? Right over the ocean!"

"Well, it was over the ocean, but it wasn't too big."

"And there were packs of HUGE, HUNGRY sharks swimming under you!"

"No, no, no. There were only a few baby fish and some blue crabs."

"Aww…"

"We lived happily next to a roaring volcano --"

"A volcano?! Really?!"

"No."

"Oh. That wasn't funny, Dad."

_Another chuckle._ "I'm sorry, Nemo. The truth is, it was a normal beach house, on a normal stretch of beach…but it was just perfect for me, Coral, and our kids."

"Coral? Was that my mom?"

"Yes, Nemo. Coral was your mom."

"What did she look like?"

"She was so beautiful. The most beautiful woman I had ever met. She was a marine biologist, just like me. I remember…we met at an aquarium, looking at some clownfish. Apparently, we both liked clownfish the best."

"I like clownfish, too!"

"That's my boy. I remember being taken aback by her eyes…they were red, just like yours."

"Wow! I have my mommy's eyes! … But … but then … the Corporation came and took her away?"

_A saddened sigh._ "That's right, Nemo. It did."

"Wha…what happened?"

"Coral and I had just put you and your brother and sisters down for a nap, and were standing outside, watching the ocean. But then, we heard a low growl, coming from the living room. We ran back inside, and saw a man. He had yellow eyes, like a barracuda. He was lean like one, too. He kept growling, like an animal; his lips peeled up in a snarl, and in that quick second I saw that his teeth were sharp and white, like small knives."

"A Stalker."

"That's right. A fifth-series Stalker, too. I handed Coral the cell phone I always kept in my pocket, and I told her to go outside … but she was so worried. For you and your siblings. I could see in her eyes that she wanted to run to you, to cover you and protect you from the Stalker."

"The Stalker was in the way?"

"Sort of. There would've been no way she could've gotten to you without him seeing her. I told her you'd be okay; I was slowly reaching for the handgun we kept in a nearby drawer. I didn't want to lose her … or you."

"What did Mom do?"

"She looked into my eyes … she mouthed 'I love you,' to me … that was the last time I ever looked into her eyes … she ran, straight towards the nursery. The Stalker, he … he _roared!_"

"Like this? RAWR!"

"No, Nemo … it was much louder. And scarier. It was no laughing matter, either."

"I know, Daddy. I'm sorry. I won't joke about it ever again."

"You're forgiven, son. May I continue? Or have you heard enough?"

"I think I can handle a little bit more … "

"I forgot about the handgun and ran at the Stalker, who had darted towards Coral. I punched him in the nose, but that didn't hurt him any. It only made him angrier. He punched me in the stomach, then picked me up and threw me out the window! I was lucky I landed on a sandbank that was sticking out of the water, otherwise I would have either been crushed or drowned."

"What happened then?"

"When I woke up, I found that I was in a stretcher. I screamed for Coral, but I couldn't see or hear her anywhere. There were so many policemen, ambulances, detectives … they were looking for the Stalker, but they never found him."

"What about mom, and my brother and sisters?"

"I saw your mom. The Stalker had … well, he had hurt her. A lot. And she … she didn't make it."

"My siblings?"

"They didn't make it, either."

"What about me?"

"Well, when the nurses put me into the ambulance, I thought you were all dead. I cried."

"_You?_ Cried?"

"I was very sad when I thought about a life without any of you. But then, they brought you into the ambulance with me."

"What did I look like?"

"Well, you were so little, I could hold you in my arm. And the Stalker, he had tried to take you away. I don't know why. But, for some reason, he got scared and dropped you. You were very lucky that it only ruined your arm; your brain could've been seriously hurt."

"So they had to take off my arm?"

"That came when you were a couple of years older, but yes. At that time, your arm was just in a cast. And you were crying, because you had been so scared. But … I touched your head. I told you it'd all be okay, that I'd never let anything happen to you. And you calmed down."

"And that's why I'm so different?"

"Well, yes, but I wouldn't call you _different_…just very, very lucky."

"And then, when we got all better, you became a comedian as well as a marine biologist, and we moved here?"

"That's right."

"Wow."

"Well, Nemo, it's getting late. Time for bed."

"Aww, I don't wanna go to bed!"

"Well, then, I guess you can stay up, and you just won't go to school tomorrow…"

"Good night, Daddy!"

_A creak of the floor, the sound of a young boy excitedly leaping from his father's lap, running down the hallway into his room, and jumping under the covers._

_The father follows, tucking his son under the covers, kissing his brow, and turning out the light._ _He returns to the chair he has been sitting in, thinking about his dead wife._

"Oh, Coral … Nemo's going to school tomorrow … I won't be able to protect him. How will I be able to keep him beside me? How can I make sure he won't join you too soon? I love him, Coral, and I know that you do, too, from your spot in heaven. But I can't let him go … he's all I have left … "

_Taa-daa! If you read it, feel free to review it! And, please, if you'd like to critique it…do it politely and maturely. Flames don't get your point across, and swearing doesn't help you make your point._


	2. One

_OMG I AM ACTUALLY UPLOADING CHAPTER TWO!!!!111!!!11 XD_

_Erm…I dunno what to say. Except that Andrew Stanton is, like, awesome and stuff…_

_And this chapter was somewhat…boring…to write. I guess because nothing is really happening yet. Except for a description of sea gypsies. And the fact that I realized I know Mr. Ray's songs by memory._

**---One---**

The next morning, Matthew "Marlin" Clonish awoke to the sensation of his son jumping on his gut.

"First day of school! First day of school!" the lad cheered, "Daddy! Time to get up!"

Marlin was not entirely focused when his son pounced on him. In a dreamlike state, his mind traveled back in time, when he was his son's age. "I don't wanna go to school," the man muttered, "Five more minutes."

Nemo Clonish laughed at his father's sluggishness. "Not you, Dad! Me! It's time for me to go to school!" With that, he jumped off of his father, running excitedly about his father's bedroom, chanting, "Time for school! Time for school!"

Marlin sat up, trying to rub the slumber from his eyes. "Okay, it's time for school," he muttered, "And it is a good thing."

At that moment, Nemo tripped, tumbling out of his father's open doorway. Immediately, Marlin was awake. Leaping to his feet, he ran towards the doorway; he saw that Nemo had fallen into a nearby trash bucket; only his legs were visible, sticking out into the air. From inside the bucket, Marlin could hear his soon still chanting that it was time for school. Had he been as carefree as he had been before Coral's death, Marlin would have thought it a funny moment. However, he was not at all carefree.

"Nemo!" Marlin gasped, "Are you okay?"

"Time for school!" Nemo replied.

Marlin shook his head. "There's no way you can get out of there on your own. Hang on." He grabbed Nemo's swinging ankles, pulling him out feet first and laying him on the floor. Nemo was quick to jump to his feet.

"Okay, are you hurt?" Marlin asked.

"Nope!" Nemo replied. He bounced from foot to foot to show he was okay.

"Are you sure? Are you bleeding? Do you feel woozy?" Marlin pressed.

"Nope," Nemo replied, his bouncing slowing. His father was _always_ worrying about him like this. Why couldn't he just admit Nemo was unharmed and forget about it?

"How many stripes are on this clownfish?" Marlin asked, pointing to the adjacent picture on the wall.

"I'm fine, Dad," Nemo said, but his father would not rest until he was sure.

"Answer the stripe question!" Marlin snapped.

"Three," Nemo replied.

"No!" Marlin gasped, hands on his head, "Something's wrong with you! That clownfish has…" He quickly counted the stripes on the clownfish. "…three stripes? Really? That's all?" Relief flowed through Marlin's veins. "You're all right."

"I told you so!" Nemo chirped; he wasn't being rude, simply truthful.

Marlin decided to change the subject. "How's the lucky limb?" he asked, gesturing towards Nemo's right arm.

Nemo wiggled the stump to the best of his ability; all that was left of it was his shoulder and half of his upper arm. "It feels lucky!" he stated, proving it to his dad by giving him a modified high-five with it.

Marlin gazed at his son; Nemo's red eyes still shocked him. They looked exactly like Coral's. How could he let this young lad go? Why didn't he choose to home school him? What had he been _thinking?!_

"Are you sure you want to go to school?" Marlin asked, "I could home school you. Or you could wait five or six more years…"

At the mention of school, Nemo's cheerful chant began again. "Time for school! Time for school!"

Marlin thought frantically for something, anything, to keep his son at school for a little while longer. "Did you brush your teeth?"

"Yep!" Nemo replied.

"Did you comb your hair?"

"Yep!"

"Is your backpack and school supplies all ready?"

"Yep!"

"Did you use the bathroom?"

Nemo's smile faded. "Oh, yeah! _That's_ what I forgot!" With that, Nemo ran into the bathroom, slamming the door shut in his urgency.

---

Five minutes later, the father and son were in the car, driving to school. Nemo was excited beyond belief; Marlin wondered if any of the other children were this ecstatic to be going to school.

"Dad! Maybe when I'm at school, I'll meet a scary guy!" Nemo gasped.

"I highly doubt that," Marlin replied, checking his blind spots of the umpteenth time.

"Have you ever met a scary guy?" Nemo asked, still bouncing in his seat.

"No, and I don't plan to," Marlin replied, and then decided it was time to teach his son a quick driving lesson. As he came to the stop sign, he asked, "Now, Nemo, what's the one thing we say about driving around town?"

"It ain't safe," Nemo replied.

Marlin ruffled his son's hair proudly. "That's my boy!" Marlin placed his hand back at the wheel. "So, when we're at the stop sign, we gotta make sure we're safe before we pull out. First, we look to the left…" Marlin looked to the left; from the corner of his eye, he saw Nemo look, as well. "…and then to the right…" The two changed their gaze to the right. "…and then to the left….and then to the right…and then, if you want to do it three more times --"

The car behind them began to honk impatiently; no one had been coming since Marlin had pulled up to the sign. "Da-ad!" Nemo groaned; he was as impatient as the driver behind them.

"Okay, here we go, on our adventure!" Marlin cheered, feigning happiness as the car pulled onto the road.

Nemo began his excited chatter anew. "How old are sea gypsies?"

Marlin was surprised that Nemo knew about the sea gypsies. The sea gypsies were kind and caring humans who were expert healers and rehabilitators of both humans and sea creatures, as well as knowing the ocean and its contents by heart. They wore outfits made from the soft silk of the byssus of bivalve shells, decorating their clothes to match the appearance of the marine animal that they believed most represented them. They were almost never seen in public, except at aquariums or beaches; even then, one couldn't tell a sea gypsy apart from a normal human unless they stared very hard at them; it was claimed that they had a magic that kept them from being recognized by those who hated the ocean. Sea gypsies were rumored to be descendants of the sea nymphs and sirens of Greek mythology, which attributed to their long lengths of lives and the ability to speak to sea creatures; Marlin, however, highly doubted that. In fact, the entire thing seemed like just a myth to him.

"Sea gypsies?" Marlin repeated, not wanting to squash his son's belief in them, "I have no idea."

"Sandy Pank, from next door?" Nemo hiccupped, his excitement getting to him, "He told me tha-that, the sea gypsies? The can live to be _two hundred years old!_"

"Well, I'll tell you what," Marlin said, "If I ever meet a sea gypsy, I'll ask him how old he is." He chuckled. "Right after I'm done talking to the scary guy, of course."

They had, at that moment, arrived at Nemo's school. Parking in a nearby slot, Marlin and Nemo stepped out onto the school grounds. Children ran about like wild animals, screaming and screeching in pure joy. Nemo began to run after them, but Marlin held his hand tightly.

Nemo looked up worriedly at his father. "You're not gonna freak out like you did at that petting zoo, are you?"

Marlin defended himself quickly. "That fawn was about to charge!" He then saw three men, leaning against a pickup truck; one of normal build, one lean and lanky, and one short and somewhat fat. "I wonder if they know what to do now," Marlin muttered, approaching them.

"Excuse me?" he said, clearing his throat as he approached them, "I'm wondering if this is where we meet the teacher…?"

"Yes, it is," the lean man said. Marlin could now see that he was dressed in an entire rancher outfit; cowboy hat, boots, shirt, jeans, the works. He suddenly seemed to recognize Marlin. A sardonic grin crept across his face. "Well, would you look who's out in the open?"

Marlin tried to smile and take the joke, but failed visibly. "Yes. Shocking, I know --"

"It's Marty, right?" the thin man asked?

"Matthew," Marlin corrected, "but my acquaintances call me Marlin."

"I'm Ted," the thin man said. He pointed to the short man and introduced him as Bob, then to the man of normal build and introduced him as Phil.

Phil's eyes lit up with recognition. "I know you!" he declared, "Yeah, you're that comedian who spoke at our church dinner a couple of months back! Man, you were hilarious! Hey, you mind telling us some jokes now?"

Ted and Bob agreed to this idea; Marlin, however, did not. "I would, but," he stuttered, "I haven't reviewed any of my material in awhile, and I, you know, I'm not really all that good, unless I'm on stage…"

"Well, if it's a stage you need," Ted declared, "you can stand in the bed of my truck."

"N-no thanks, Ted," Marlin said, "I'll just try my best. I do remember one that I haven't used yet, but it's pretty funny."

Nemo groaned, hiding his head in his hand.

"Now, you see," Marlin said, "there's this mollusk, and this sea cucumber. Its during high tide, when they meet, you know…or maybe it was at low tide. No, yeah, it was at _low_ tide, they would've been hiding at high tide, cuz, you know, that's when the sharks and rays come around…"

The three dads began to wonder if asking Marlin to tell a joke was a wise maneuver.

Marlin continued on, doggedly, "Anyways, the sea cucumber, or no wait, the _mollusk_, yeah, that's it. The mollusk, he's singing a little ditty; because, you know, in a joke, everyone talks. Anyways, the mollusk is singing and they…wait…no, wait, the sea cucumber!"

By now, the three dads were positive they had made a mistake.

"But the sea cucumber, he turns to the mollusk and say, 'Hey…not during low tide.' Heh heh, isn't that, you know…um…well, you know, the joke _itself_ doesn't have to be funny. It's all about the delivery!"

"SHELDON!" Ted suddenly barked, "Get off that girl, right now!"

Marlin whirled around in horror; thankfully, he realized that the boy Ted had shouted at had simply jumped onto a small girl for a piggyback ride. Another boy was pointing at them and laughing, at which the two immediately tackled him to the ground. He wiggled out from under them, scrambling towards them. The other boy and the girl followed close behind, giggling and snorting with happiness.

The little girl poked at Nemo's lucky limb and asked, "Ew! What's wrong with your arm?"

"He looks funny!" shouted the second boy.

Before Ted's son could make any remarks, Ted pulled his ear. "OWCH!" the boy whimpered, "What'd I do?"

"Be nice," Ted snapped, "It's his first day of school."

Marlin, meanwhile, decided to explain his son's appearance to the three kids. "Nemo was born with it. We call it his lucky limb."

Nemo blushed with embarrassment, but the girl spoke before he could chastise his father. "It's nice to meet you, Nemo!" she said, giving a little curtsey as she did so. "My name is Pearl, and I have a lucky limb, too! Well, kind of." She picked up her foot. "See this foot? It's actually shorter than my other one, but you can't really tell." She began to spin in a ballerina's circle. "Especially when I spin like this!"

While Pearl continued to spin, Ted's son made his greeting. "I'm Sheldon," he said, "and I have really bad ah…ahl…ah-CHOOOO!" He sneezed powerfully, knocking himself off balance on onto the ground, landing on his behind. "Allergies."

The final boy jumped in front of Nemo, staring directly into his eyes; Nemo felt that he was a bit too close for comfort. "I'm Tad," he declared, "and I'm ob-oh-nox-she-us!"

As Tad had introduced himself, a bus had pulled up to the pavement. All of the children had immediately swarmed towards it, like a school of aquarium fish who know when they are about to be fed. The bus parked, and a man stepped out from its opposite side, singing loudly. "Ohhhhh, let's name the zones, the zones, the zones, let's name the zones of the open seeeeeeeeea!"

"Mr. Ray!" cheered Nemo's three new friends, darting to join the group of children. Tad beckoned to Nemo to follow, but Marlin held him back. He was not quite ready to turn his son over to the teacher.

"Theeeeeeeeere's…" Mr. Ray continued, "…epipelagic, mesopelagic, bathypelagic, abyssyopelagic. All the rest are too deep for you and me to seeeeeeeeeee!"

Mr. Ray finally made his way to the side of the bus where his class stood. He was a tall, thickly-set man with glasses. His brown hair was flecked with white, as was his beard. In spite of his somewhat imposing appearance, his eyes gleamed with a friendly nature that appealed to all ages. This was a man worthy of trust.

"So, kids!" Mr. Ray said, "You ready for adventures?"

"YAY!" cheered the throng of kids.

"Well, then, what are you waiting for?" Mr. Ray declared, opening the bus door. He began another song: "Ohhhh, knowledge exploring is oh-so-lyrical, when you think thoughts that are empiricaaaaaal!"

Nemo wiggled free from his father's grasp. "You can go now, dad," he said, jumping onto the bus.

Mr. Ray, who had returned to the driver's seat, smiled at him. "Well, hello there! What's your name?"

_Well, surely, he should know that_, Marlin thought, _He should have, like, a roster or something. He should be taking roll call. Why isn't he? I shouldn't have let Nemo go to school!_

"I'm Nemo!" he replied, grinning proudly.

"Well, Nemo," Mr. Ray said, "All my new students must answer a science question: what do clownfish live in?"

"I know that one!" Nemo cheered, "They live in an anemonnemoneee…an anmenonemanemone? Amnemno…" Nemo struggled to find the right pronuciation; what if Mr. Ray didn't let him join the class if he couldn't say it right?

"Okay, okay, kid," Mr. Ray said, "Don't hurt yourself. Find yourself a seat, Nemo!"

As Nemo sat down in the empty seat next to Sheldon, Marlin stuck his head through the door; he couldn't hold back any longer. "Excuse me, sir," Marlin said, "my son, he has only one arm. That makes things a bit difficult for him; I find that, if he's having trouble, just give him a five or ten minute break, you know?"

"Um, Dad?" Nemo's voice popped up, "You can go now."

Mr. Ray perceived Marlin's fears and alleviated them. "Don't worry, Mr. Clonish, we'll be staying together as a group."

Marlin tried to relax upon hearing that. He backed out of the bus as the doors closed, and it began to pull out of the school parking lot. "Bye, Nemo!" Marlin called after it; from the window, he saw his son wave cheerfully back.

Marlin watched the bus until it vanished out of sight, down the road and towards its destination…wherever that was. Marlin was vaguely aware of signing a permission sheet for a field trip, but he could not recall where the trip was to.

A hand clamped down on Marlin's shoulder, causing him to jump in fright. Whirling around, he relaxed when he saw that it was just Ted. "You're doing really well for a first-timer."

Marlin gave him a shaky smile. "Well, you know," he said, "you can't keep them around forever, right?"

Phil gave a reminiscing laugh. "I had a hard time when my oldest, Alyssa, went on the first-day field trip to Galveston."

That word clicked in Marlin's mind; he saw, as though it had happened only yesterday, his wife, lying dead, her white dress splattered with blood, her throat and chest gaping open, her heart and other organs clearly visible, her lovely red eyes closed forever…

"Galveston?!" Marlin repeated, "They're going to _Galveston?!_ What, what are you _insane?_" Marlin stormed towards his car, yanking the door open angrily. "What kind of teacher takes his students on a field trip the first day back from summer break, anyway?"

"Hey, Marty!" Ted called, "calm down! They're safe!"

Marlin gnashed his teeth at Ted, glaring angrily at his cowboy outfit. "Don't tell me to be calm, Ennis!" he bellowed, slamming the door shut, starting the car, and peeling out of the driveway in the direction the bus had gone.

Ted, Phil, and Bob, meanwhile were still recovering from the shock of Marlin's outburst. "…Ennis?" Ted repeated disgustedly, touching the rim of his hat.

"You know," Phil declared, "for a comedian, he ain't that funny offstage."

Bob clicked his tongue. "Pity."

_Please leave your reviews in this box. *holds out box*_


	3. Two

_I am so totally diving with an eleven-foot nurse shark tomorrow afternoon. Heck. Yes. XD I am so amazingly flippin' excited, I might just have to upload another chapter afterwards. ^^_

_In the meantime, enjoy the next installment of __**The Corporation**__. I incorporated another deleted scene into it (you can have ice cream if you spot it), and I did some research to discover what the bottlenose dolphin's Latin name is. And I left out the "you made me ink" joke, because I am, like, human-waste-a-phobic and absolutely despise potty humor. Ah, well._

_On a completely different topic, I was watching some show on Animal Planet, where they were demonstrating a mako shark's attack methods (mako shark = Chum, fyi). What innocent fish was used to show the mako's biting strength? A palette surgeonfish. Chum frikkin ate Dory. XD_

**---Two---**

Nemo couldn't take his eyes off of the window.

He was aware of the excited chatter of his fellow students, as well as Mr. Ray's song about the various species of sea animals. But Nemo was far too fascinated at the panorama outside of the bus: rolling past, far too speedily for him to truly focus on the details, was the city he lived in. The buildings dwindled in number, until all that was left was the Texas countryside, where cows and horses grazed lazily, enjoying the sunshine. The plains soon melded with the salt marshes, hailing the approach of the coast (or so his dad said; since his dad was a marine biologist, Nemo figured that he would know such things). The bus took a left turn, headed towards the island…and, for the first time, Nemo saw the ocean.

He had to strain his eyes to see the water over the sand dunes, but it was visible. Not too impressive; then again, he wasn't next to it. Surely, up close, the ocean looked much larger. Although this was a mild disappointment, it did not abate Nemo's excitement. As soon as they got to the beach, Nemo was going to run down to the ocean's edge and let the waves tickle his toes. He couldn't possibly have been more excited!

Marlin, meanwhile, couldn't have possibly been more worried, anxious, or upset. He had been stopped at every red light, held up by a construction site, and forced to stop when a cow escaped from its pasture and decided to take a nap in the middle of the read. Now he was stuck in a mild traffic jam…mild, that is, when compared to rush hour in Houston.

Marlin tried to keep his composure, which was currently far more difficult for him than normal. He hoped to high heaven that Nemo wouldn't do something drastic before he arrived.

---

The waves tickled Nemo's toes, which made him smile. Yes; the ocean was far more impressive up-close.

Wandering about on the Galveston beach, Mr. Ray's students collected shells, splashed each other, and chased seagulls. Tad, Sheldon, and Pearl were wading along with Nemo, laughing and joking and wrestling; any bystander would have thought the four of them had been best friends for life.

"Okay, kids!" Mr. Ray's shout caused the students to come scrambling back to him. Mr. Ray continued, "Stay close, you guys, and let's see what we can find…"

Mr. Ray scanned the horizon; any ill-educated person would surely have missed the familiar, triangular fin of a lone bottlenose dolphin that cut the waves some distance away. A grin spread across Mr. Ray's face; he had seen thousands of dolphins in his lifetime, yet each one still gave him the same joyous feeling.

"Look!" he shouted, pointing, "A _Tursiops truncatus! _They're common in Texas oceans. You guys may know them as bottlenose dolphins. They're not fish, but mammals…"

Nemo was the only one in his group of four that was paying any attention to Mr. Ray's lecture. Pearl spun slowly in one of her ballerina circles while the boys stared blankly at the teacher. Tad, finally, took the initiative. He whispered to his three friends, "Come on, let's go."

Taking his cue, Sheldon and Pearl turned and ran, following Tad away from the group. Nemo was a bit slower to react (after all, he had never run away from a teacher before; never mind he had never been to school before), but was quick to follow.

Running on the sand was such a sweet taste of freedom. Instead of the hard concrete or soft carpet, giving him a firm footing that could be painful if he stepped too hard, the sand cradled Nemo's feet, working with his stride rather than against it. Nemo quickly forgot about this observation, however; he noticed that Tad, Sheldon, and Pearl had gotten farther ahead, almost out of side.

"Guys, wait up!" Nemo shouted. As soon as the phrase was out of his lips, his three friends stopped; however, it wasn't because they had heard Nemo's request. Nemo immediately saw the reason for their halt.

The beach house stood on tall pillars in the water, its wood rotted and ugly. The house had obviously not been lived in for years; it was the image of a haunted house, filled with ghosts and memories of the past. The strangeness of the building struck awe in the hearts of the children.

"You know what I heard?" Tad interrupted the silence. "There was this huge family that lived in there, but Stalkers came, ate them all, and threw their bones to the sharks!"

"There's no sharks here," Nemo muttered, "the water under the house is too shallow." Nemo was not entirely sure of what he was saying; for some reason, the house seemed…familiar…

Sheldon grinned mischievously, hopping towards the house. He put a foot on the first stair that led up to the front door. "Oh, look at me!" he jeered, "I'm gonna go explore the spooky beach house!" His allergies betrayed him, causing him to sneeze so powerfully that he fell onto the stairs. With a shriek of startlement, Sheldon scrambled to his feet, removing himself from the stairs. The gangly boy's movements caused Nemo, Tad, and Pearl to laugh at him.

Sheldon frowned at their teasing laughter. "I bet _you_ guys can't go any further than that."

Pearl, shy little Pearl, was the first to take Sheldon up on his challenge. She skipped to the third stair, proudly striking a ballet pose. "Beat that!" she challenged.

Tad did not hesitate; he couldn't let a girl show him up! He pushed past Pearl, coming to stop on the sixth stair. He grinned at Nemo, shouting to him to join them on the stairs. "How far can you go?"

Something in Nemo's gut told him that there was something amiss here. He took a step back, his eyes on his feet. "Uhm," he muttered, "My dad says it's not safe…"

Unbeknownst to Nemo, Marlin had pulled his car onto the patch of sand behind them just as Sheldon had touched the stair. Marlin recognized the house instantly, a feeling of nausea hitting his gut. What was Nemo doing here? And, when it seemed as though Nemo was about to actually _touch_ the house…Marlin couldn't stand it any longer. He flung the door open and barged out.

"NEMO!!!" he bellowed, as only an angry father could, "COME HERE!!!"

The blood drained from Nemo's face. "Dad?!" What was his father doing here, embarrassing him in front of his friends?

Marlin didn't wait for Nemo to follow his orders. He crossed to Nemo as quickly as possible, grabbing his wrist in anger. "You were about to go into that house, weren't you?"

"No!" Nemo defended, stubbornly trying to free himself.

"It's certainly a good thing I was here, young man," Marlin snapped, "You shouldn't be anywhere near here! You could get hurt!" Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Mr. Ray and the rest of his class had finally found the missing students. _I'll have to report him,_ Marlin mused, _Letting his students wander off_.

"Excuse me, sir?" Pearl's voice piped up. She and the other two boys had approached him, wanting to defend their friend.

"He wasn't gonna go!" Sheldon said.

"He was too afraid!" Tad added; Nemo shot him a glare that said simply, _You are not helping!_

"This," Marlin snapped, "does not concern you, kids. In fact, you're lucky I don't even tell your parents you were out there." His attention returned to his son; _what if he'd been hurt?_ He said, "Nemo, you know you can't do things as well as the other kids can."

Being reminded of his lack of an arm in such a way disappointed Nemo; Marlin was his father! He should know better than to say his handicap weakened him! "I'm just as strong as all the other kids, okay?!" Nemo defended, his voice losing its defensive plea and gaining a rageful tone.

Marlin was not listening to his son; this was the perfect excuse to take him home, where he was safe. "Look, I was right," Marlin said, beginning to lead Nemo towards the car, "we'll start school in a couple of years."

"No, Dad!" Nemo snarled, yanking free of his father's iron grasp. "Just because _you're_ scared of everything --!"

"You are not ready for school," Marlin snapped, "and you are not coming back until I know for sure that you are. You think you can do these things, but you _just can't_, Nemo!"

Nemo was fiercely irritated and angry at his father now. So upset was he, that he clenched his teeth together, angrily, and uttered that taboo statement, the one that any child can use to startle or freeze the heart of any parent: "I…_hate_…you."

Just as Nemo had hoped, the words hurt his father. Deeply.

Mr. Ray chose that moment to step in. Clearing his throat, he said, "Excuse me, Mr. Clonish? Is there anything I can do to help? I am a scientist, after all."

_I doubt that can help our situation any_, Marlin thought; the animosity towards the teacher was no longer there, as it had vanished with all of his other feelings of anger and bitterness when Nemo, his own flesh and bone, had told him he hated him. Marlin tried to explain his fears, but he couldn't. How could this scientist/teacher ever understand what he had been through?

Marlin stopped trying to explain when a buck-toothed little girl made an astonishing announcement. "Nemo's going inside the scary beach house!"

Marlin whirled around; Nemo had snuck away from his side, marching up the stairs to the front door of the house. "Nemo!" Marlin gasped, "Young man, get back here!"

Nemo stood at the front door and cast a glare of anger over his shoulder at his father. He didn't budge an inch.

Marlin continued, cautiously approaching the bottom of the stairs. "You're gonna get trapped up there, and then I'll have to get you before a Stalker does! Now, if you are not down here by the count of three, you will be in big trouble, Mister!"

_You won't do anything,_ Nemo thought bitterly, _you're scared of this stupid old house. But I'm not._ He turned around, ignoring his father's slow and deliberate counting, and opened the door with surprising ease. As though the house had been expecting him.

The furniture inside the house was covered with a thin layer of dust and cobwebs. Spiders and geckos skittered across the wooden floor as Nemo crossed it, ignoring the angered shouts of his father outside. He poked his head inside a doorway; years ago, the hinges had rusted off the door, which had collapsed inside the room. It was a nursery; the walls, now grimy with mold and dirt, had once been pale yellow, with friendly dolphins and whales leaping from the blue, ocean wave border that circled the walls. A large crib, large enough to hold at least six babies, had been placed at the opposite wall; a red stain covered it, caked into the covers.

Nemo backed away from the foreboding sight, stepping on a rectangular object as he did so. Curious, he stooped down to pick it up. It was a picture frame, a photograph of a newly wedded couple inside. The bride was absolutely beautiful; and her groom was young and dashing. Terribly familiar, too. Hang on…that looked…almost like…

Nemo's hand shook as he held the picture. _That's Dad_, he realized, looking at the smiling man, _and that must be Mom. That means…this is their old house. After the attack, Dad never wanted to come back…and he didn't want __**me **__to come back, either. That room…was my nursery. And that red spot, on the crib…that must've been when that Stalker…hurt…wait. What if…what if there are still Stalkers here?_

The crash that sounded behind Nemo caused him to drop the picture in surprise; the frame shattered as it impacted with the floor. Nemo felt the cold hands grab him torso from behind, covering his mouth. He couldn't scream for help…

Marlin was continuing his berating speech. "Young man, you are in big trouble! Big…! Big…!"

His voice trailed off as he saw the horrid sight. His son had finally reemerged, yes…but he was in the arms of a lean man. The man's eyes were glassy, like a deranged pit bull's. His eyes met Marlin's, and a snarl of anger parted his lips; the man's teeth were yellow and plaque-covered. A shudder traveled down Marlin's spine; it was a seventh-series Stalker, more human in form (the eyes and teeth were slightly less animalistic), but the same animalistic nature.

And this monster, almost the same species as his wife's murderer, had Marlin's son.

Marlin was aware of Pearl screaming in fright; he was also aware of Mr. Ray grabbing as many of his students' wrists and leading them away. He saw Nemo wrench his mouth away from the Stalker's hand.

"Daddy!" Nemo shouted, "Help me!" That was all he managed to shout before the Stalker placed his hand back over Nemo's mouth. With a mighty leap, the Stalker jumped from the balcony into the wet sand, two stories below. The jump didn't faze the monster at all; he simply began running away, taking Nemo with him.

The shock of what was happening to him wore off, and Marlin found the use of his legs. "I'm coming, Nemo!" he shouted, running after them.

Marlin had never seen the second Stalker; where it had come from, he was not sure. She (for this one was obviously female) stood in front of him, growling threateningly and blocking his way. This Stalker was giving her pack member time to escape with his son. And Marlin? He was, ashamedly, too frightened to try to fight or run past this Stalker.

A white truck appeared, sleek and gleaming. The she-Stalker darted towards it, not giving Marlin a second glance, leaping into the bed with inhuman grace. Just before the truck zoomed down the beach, kicking up a cloud of sand, Marlin saw his son's face through the window. Nemo beat his hands against the glass, his face scrunched in an expression of fear. The truck vanished down the stretch of sand.

"No!" Marlin screamed, as though his shout would reverse the horrors of what was happening to him. Marlin began to act entirely on instinct; in a moment, he was at his car, jettying the door open and hurrying to start the car. The engine sputtered once, twice…then died. Of course. Sand had gotten into the engine.

Marlin hit the wheel in frustration, then jumped back out of the dead car and began to run in the direction the truck had gone. A whisper at the back of his mind told him he would never catch up. Logic, however, had no hold on his mind. He could think of absolutely nothing else, except for his son.

That was all Marlin could see, all he was aware of…the Stalker taking away his son, taking away the only person he had left…taking away his only son…

He kept running.

_And so, the actual finding of Nemo begins!_

_Feel free to (politely) review. ^^_


End file.
